Introduction to the Book of Nahum

Table of Contents

• General Info
• Brief Survey
• Key Verses
• Author, Date and Recipients
• Historical Background & Timeline
• Themes, Purpose & Theology
• Interpretation Hints and Challenges
• Outline

General Info

The Prophet Nahum is the second prophet to deliver a warning to the wicked nation of Assyria and to their capital city of Nineveh.  In the past, the Prophet Jonah reluctantly walked through the city proclaiming to the inhabitants that, “Forty more days and Nineveh will be overturned”.  In response, virtually everyone, including the king repented and thus, God relented.  Fast forward over a hundred years later, Nahum gave another warning to the Assyrians, but the people had devolved past the point of repentance and would be destroyed.  Thus, the Book of Nahum could be considered as a sequel to the Book of Jonah.  Of course, there was a major difference between the two prophets.  Nahum delivered God’s message willingly, while Jonah had to be convinced by being thrown overboard from a ship on a raging sea and being swallowed by a large fish.  Of course, the outcomes of each situation, at least for Jonah, probably contributed to the differing attitudes.  Jonah reluctantly wrote of God withholding judgment on the Assyrians, the most barbarous and hated enemies of Israel, while Nahum foretells of Assyria’s certain destruction.

As a result of the connection, the Book of Nahum is often thought of as a sequel to the Book of Jonah who prophesied over a century earlier.  Jonah recounts the remission of God’s promised judgment toward Nineveh, while Nahum depicts the later execution of God’s judgment, which virtually ended the Assyrian Empire.

 In the Protestant Canon, Nahum is grouped with the other eleven books in the section called the “Minor Prophets”.  Each of the twelve books are named for its author and main character.  The name “Nahum” (Hebrew nachum) means “comfort” or “consolation”, and his message of doom and destruction for Nineveh was doubtless a source of comfort to the inhabitants of Judah who had long suffered under the cruelty of the Assyrians.  In the Hebrew Bible Canon, the twelve books of the minor prophets (along with Isaiah, Jeremiah and Ezekiel) are grouped into a section called the Nevi’im Aharonim, or the “Latter Prophets”.

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Brief Survey

Chapter 1 of the book of Nahum opens with the introductory statement, “A prophecy concerning Nineveh.  The book of the vision of Nahum the Elkoshite” (1:1).  The prophet then paints a picture of the Lord as an all-powerful and just God who is slow to anger, but His righteousness requires that justice be done.  In chapter 2, the prophet continues to deliver God’s message that a conqueror is coming and all of their fortified cities and military might could not save them.  Yet, when God’s patience ran out, He sent the Babylonians to breach the walls, storm the streets with their chariots, and the palace collapsed (2:4-10).

In the third and final chapter, Nahum relays additional woes to come on Nineveh, the city of blood and lies (1-7).  The book closes with a further description of the coming utter destruction to come on the Assyrians, and a comparison of Nineveh to the fall of Thebes, the capital city of Egypt (3:8-11).  Ironically, the city of Thebes was also deemed unconquerable before being conquered in 663 BC.  Thus, the prophet Nahum is relaying these prophecies against Assyria shortly after the Assyrians had conquered Thebes, which undoubtedly enhanced the Assyrians’ belief that they themselves couldn’t be conquered.

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Key Verses

The LORD is a jealous and avenging God; the LORD takes vengeance and is filled with wrath.  The LORD takes vengeance on his foes and vents his wrath against his enemies.  The LORD is slow to anger but great in power; the LORD will not leave the guilty unpunished.  His way is in the whirlwind and the storm, and clouds are the dust of his feet. (1:2-3)

The LORD is good, a refuge in times of trouble. He cares for those who trust in him, but with an overwhelming flood he will make an end of Nineveh; he will pursue his foes into the realm of darkness. (1:7-8)

This is what the LORD says: “Although they have allies and are numerous, they will be destroyed and pass away.  Although I have afflicted you, Judah, I will afflict you no more.  Now I will break their yoke from your neck and tear your shackles away.”  The LORD has given a command concerning you, Nineveh: “You will have no descendants to bear your name.  I will destroy the images and idols that are in the temple of your gods. I will prepare your grave, for you are vile.” (1:12-14)

Look, there on the mountains, the feet of one who brings good news, who proclaims peace!  Celebrate your festivals, Judah, and fulfill your vows.  No more will the wicked invade you; they will be completely destroyed. (1:15)

An attacker advances against you, Nineveh. Guard the fortress, watch the road, brace yourselves, marshal all your strength!  The LORD will restore the splendor of Jacob like the splendor of Israel, though destroyers have laid them waste and have ruined their vines. (2:1-2)

Nineveh summons her picked troops, yet they stumble on their way.  They dash to the city wall; the protective shield is put in place.  The river gates are thrown open and the palace collapses. (2:5-6)

King of Assyria, your shepherds slumber; your nobles lie down to rest.  Your people are scattered on the mountains with no one to gather them.  Nothing can heal you; your wound is fatal.  All who hear the news about you clap their hands at your fall, for who has not felt your endless cruelty. (3:18-19)

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Author and Date

The author identifies himself in the opening verse as “Nahum the Elkoshite”.  His connection with the village Elkosh is not particularly helpful, since its exact location is unknown.  Some interpreters believe that, since the name “Capernaum” may have come from the Hebrew for “village of Nahum”, that Nahum may have been born and/or lived there.  Capernaum was located on the northern shore of the sea of Galilee, the area in which Jesus conducted much of Him ministry during His first advent.  Thus some suggest that Nahum was a northern Israelite exile living in Assyria who sent his prophecy to Judah.  Others however, believe that chapter 1, verse 15 implies that the prophet was living in Judah, but this merely refers to an original recipient of the oracle, not to the author itself.  One historical source even locates Elkosh in Assyria, near ancient Nineveh in what is now modern day Iraq.  Although there is no clear consensus, early historical tradition appears to favor the tradition that Nahum was from Judah.

There were two basic groups that made up the original target audience.  Obviously, Nahum was warning the Assyrians of the impending wrath of God for their unrestrained and unrepentant wickedness.  The primary audience however, was God’s people in Judah, who had suffered for centuries due to the brutal Assyrians from the ninth century BC until Nahum’s day.  As we’ve noted, the prophet’s message would have brought great comfort to, not only the Jewish people, but also to many other neighboring nations who had suffered atrocities at the hand of the brutal Assyrians.

Since there is no mention of any kings in the introduction, the most common criteria used for dating biblical events, the date of Nahum’s prophecies must be implied by references to internal historical events with known dates.  We can reasonably assert that Assyria may have been near the peak of its power under King Ashurbanipal (reigned 668-627 BC) at the time that its army invaded and captured Thebes (3:8-10), the capital city of Egypt.  We know from external historical sources that this happened in 663 BC.  Thus, Nahum’s book must have been written after that date.  We also know that Nineveh (Assyria) fell to the Medes and Babylonians in 612 BC.  Since Nahum clearly portrays Nineveh’s destruction as a coming event, the book would have to be written prior to this event.  Thus, we can narrow the window of writing to between 663 and 612 BC.

We might be able to narrow the writing date down even further by considering that, the power of the Assyrian Empire eroded greatly during the last decade of King Ashurbanipal’s reign (668–627 BC), and the decline rapidly continued after his death.  This might further restrict the writing period down to between 663 and 637 BC.

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Historical Background and Timeline

After centuries of existence as a vassal of  Babylonia, the Assyrians finally emerged as an independent state in the fourteenth century BC.  For the next 500 years or so, their power and influence over the region ebbed and flowed.  In the ninth century BC however, the Assyrian kings embarked on a considerable expansion that consolidated control of most of the Middle East from Egypt to the Persian Gulf under their rule.  Thus, the Assyrians had been a thorn in the side of the Israelites since that time.  As mentioned above, God had sent the reluctant prophet Jonah to preach repentance about this same time, and all the people of Nineveh repented.  Now, just over a century later, the next generations had returned to paganism and resumed their evil ways.

Assyria, under King Sennacherib (reigned 705-681 BC), conquered and exiled the northern kingdom of Israel in 722 BC (2Kings 17).  They then attempted to conquer Jerusalem, the capital city of the southern kingdom of Judah, but God sent an angel that annihilated their army and officers and saved Jerusalem (2Kg 19; 2Chr 32:1-23).  Still, in Nahum’s time, Israel had been living under Assyrian rule for almost a century.  Thus, it probably appeared to Israel that the unrestrained reign of the Assyrians was unstoppable and might go on forever.  Their large and fortified capital city of Nineveh was equipped with a seemingly impregnable wall measuring eight miles in circumference and ranging in height from 25 to 50 feet.  The walls also contained about 1500 towers that were about 200 feet tall, and was surrounded by a deep moat.  It is no wonder that the city was deemed to be invincible.

Yet, God’s patience finally ran out on the Assyrians.  Just as the prophet Nahum foretold, God sent Babylon’s army, led by King Nabopolassar and his son, Nebuchadnezzar to destroy Assyria in 612 BC.  God even revealed to Nahum how Nineveh would fall.  It would happen “with an overwhelming flood” (1:8).  The first century AD Greek historian, Diodorus of Sicily, records that Babylon, along with their allies lay siege to the City of Nineveh for about three months, but the battering rams were ineffective on the city’s mighty walls.  Then, heavy rains caused the Tigris River to overflow and flood the city walls, which allowed the Babylonians access to the city.  Upon entry, the attackers pillaged then burned the city to the ground.  What little was left of the city remained hidden for about 2400 years until archeologists discovered a few remains in 1842 AD, but very little was left.  Yet, archeologists still continue digging today in what is now the suburbs of Mosul in northern Iraq.

See the “Author and Date” chapter above for additional historical background info.

See OT History and Monarchy Chronology for timeline of additional historical events.

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Themes, Purpose and Theology

The primary theme of Nahum’s prophecy is the coming destruction of Nineveh, the capital city of Assyria.  This would essentially end the Assyrian Empire’s strict control over the Middle East.

There are two clear purposes in relaying God’s message to his initial audiences.  The obvious one is to provide a warning to the people of Nineveh of the judgment and destruction that was coming soon.  The second and more important purpose was to comfort the people of Judah, who at the time of the message, were still basically a vassal of Assyria.  Thus, the message of the prophecy would be of great assurance to the Israelites that they would soon be free of the constant threats from their enemy.  At the time, most of the Israelites probably thought of Assyria as an invincible enemy possessing unlimited power, but Nahum’s message reminded them that no kingdom of evil humans is beyond the wrath and power of the Almighty God once His patience has run out.

Regarding theology in Nahum, we’ve already mentioned God’s patience more than once, however His patience should never be interpreted as weakness regarding His justice or righteous hatred of sin.  God is sovereign over all nations and individuals, and all wickedness will be punished in His perfect timing.  Assyria possessed an unquenchable lust for power without consideration for any other nation.  This resulted in continual warfare and brutal mistreatment of all neighboring nations.  At the chosen time, God exercised his sovereignty and power to bring down the oppressors, thus showing His goodness to His covenant people.  As Nahum noted, The LORD is good, a refuge in times of trouble. He cares for those who trust in him (1:7).

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Interpretation Hints and Challenges

The book of Nahum is a fairly straight-forward proclamation of prophetic judgment against Assyria and her capital Nineveh for cruel atrocities and idolatrous practices as noted in the various chapters above.  With the possible exception of the identity of the village of Elkosh, the book presents no major interpretive issues.  It does help to have a workable knowledge of the typical literary genre used by the prophets.  For this, we invite you to read our Interpreting Prophetical and Apocalyptic Literature for additional interpretive info regarding the literary genre typically used by the writing prophets.

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Outline

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